This post is part of Our World Tuesday meme, and
The Taphophile Tragics meme.
Tuesday, 31 January 2012
MELBOURNE CEMETERY GATEHOUSE
The Melbourne General Cemetery is a large (43 hectare) necropolis located 2 km north of the city of Melbourne in the suburb of Carlton North. The cemetery was established in 1852 and opened on 1st June 1853, and the Old Melbourne Cemetery (on the site of what is now the Queen Victoria Market) was closed the next year. The grounds feature several heritage buildings, many in bluestone, including a couple of chapels and a number of cast iron pavilions. The gatehouses are particularly notable, especially the one at the main gate, shown here. It is presently being used as offices for the cemetery staff.
This post is part of Our World Tuesday meme, and
The Taphophile Tragics meme.
This post is part of Our World Tuesday meme, and
The Taphophile Tragics meme.
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That poor lady on the portico needs a nose job Nick ... wonderful to see a gate-house at the main entrance .. our largest city cemetery has no one in residence only a screen to look up info or maps.... so impersonal.
ReplyDeleteGreat captures Nick. I do appreciate the artistry of the sculptors and stonemasons of yesteryear which are so admirably in evidence in Melbourne. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteTerrific captures, Nick! I agree with Dianne and most of our cemeteries are very impersonal, too. I do love your composition! Hope you have a great week!
ReplyDeleteSylvia
How wonderful a journey !
ReplyDeleteThank you for the inspiration. Please have a good Tuesday.
Very impressive chapel and gatehouse. I love the angles and composition of your photos. Well done! Thanks for sharing your world, have a great week!
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a fantastic place for a stroll and a few shots!
DeleteGreat shots of an interesting cemetery. The architecture is very appealing to me.
ReplyDeleteThat last one is a little eerie - she looks to be a giantess hovering over the children. Nice details of the gatehouse.
ReplyDeleteFeel like strolling in this place. Thank you, Nick.
ReplyDeleteI like the architecture, particularly the carvings.
ReplyDeleteWonderful shots of gatehouse. Sculptural work is nice.
ReplyDeleteBluestone suits Melbourne. Nice detailed shots.
ReplyDeleteI love the details of the architecture! Doesn't look like one cemetery at all!
ReplyDeleteA nice house with lots of decorations. Had to laugh about the comment of Dianne about a nose job. You Aussies have great humor.
ReplyDeleteIt looks a very peaceful place to work and if a cemetery could be said to be welcoming this could be so described. Love the carvings.
ReplyDeleteGreat architecture and I love the details on shots #3 and #4.
ReplyDeletebelle serie, et j'aime bien l'angles choisis pour tes photos
ReplyDeletePublicity ;o) Every Friday (and the Weekend), The Challenge "Walk In The Street Photography"
Cemeteries fascinate me; I find the Victorian a bit too overpowering and pompous but still an excellent image of the mentality of the times.
ReplyDeleteExcellent photos, as always Nick. It's always fascinating to see these treasures around my home city which I never gave much thought to before.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful building! Wait till I post the cemetery office from my old hometown. Looks like a tool shed.
ReplyDeleteFinally, my ISP has returned me to full-cream rather than being throttled at 64 km/s ...
ReplyDeleteOf the cemeteries I have visited thus far in Sydney, only Rookwood has buildings like this, and I am not sure they are termed 'gate-houses'. I love that image at an angle, Nick. I think that 'bluestone' to be Melburnian, there is a bit up here but probably imported. Suspect it might make the building a bit dark and gloomy in which to work.
All the reliefs on the building are to treasure, Nick, even the poor woman desperate for a nose-job who is biting on something (a twig?) through gritted teeth. Your final image of the nun and her semi-circle of 'charges' leads me to suspect that the building may have also housed an 'order' at some stage or have been part of a school. Nonono ... when I look more closely, the circle is composed of young Aborigines, and their rough huts are in the background, not humpies but settlers slab huts. Any idea on the origin of this relief?
Thanks for continuing with such wonderful posts from the Melbourne cemeteries. I appreciate your involvement, and eye for a good story.
Hi Julie, thanks for your comment. The plaque is of St Mary McKillop (born in Fitzroy, Melbourne) and active all over the place, having done wonderful work with the aboriginal population. You may remember seeing this commemorative coin from 2008, that shows some resemblance to the plaque:
Deletehttp://www.churchnewssite.com/portal/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Mary-MacKillop-Austrailain-Saint-Commemorative-Coin.jpg